Our sage grandfather once told us that you've got three options when confronted with a problem. You can live with it, fix it, or avoid it. Our problem is the weekend onslaught of tourists. With the spring luring out-of-towners to the District in 17-year-cicada-like droves, we're simply not in the mood to deal with the super-obese family sporting matching "F.B.I. Witness Protection Program" T-shirts, blocking the left side of the Metro escalator, and imprudently buying $3 bottles of tap water from the huckster vendor outside of the Air & Space Museum. Accordingly, we apply Pop-Pop's time-tested rule and select the "avoid it" option. And by that, we mean that we skip town for some wine-tasting.

An hour's drive west on Route 66 lands you at one of Virginia's best wineries -- Linden Vineyards. Along with Veritas Winery outside of Charlottesville, Linden represents virtually everything that Virginia wineries should be doing. That is, it focuses mainly on grapes that grow well in Virginia and allows the fruit to shine through in its wines by applying oak only in moderation. Although much has been made of the primacy of viognier in Virginia, such deification is more a marketing construct than an absolute truth. Sure, Virginia viognier occasionally stands out (though it almost never provides a good cost-to-quality ratio). But the Commonwealth's climate and soil more properly lend themselves to white French-American hybrids (vidal blanc and seyval blanc), certain non-famous Bordeaux grapes (cabernet franc and petit verdot), and chardonnay -- which is so durable that it could grow well on a Superfund site.

Recognizing as much, Linden does not even offer a viognier on its standard wine roster -- a rare decision among Virginia wineries. And there's no question it's the right decision. Linden's 1999 Chardonnay ($20) is all about perfect balance. It is nothing like those oak-bomb, buttery chardonnays that have caused so many wine-drinkers to abandon overblown California chardonnays. Because winemaker Jim Law didn't put this wine through malolactic fermentation -- the scientific cause of creaminess and butteriness, the wine shows scents of green apple as opposed to Land O'Lakes. Although the wine certainly isn't as lean as a sauvignon blanc, it's not viscous in the mouth either. And its relatively high acidity has helped this seven-year-old wine drink well long after most American chardonnays should have had their corks popped.

The 2003 Chardonnay ($18) is less restrained. If you happen to like the oaky, buttery style, you'll take comfort in this offering. Unlike the 1999 version, the 2003 did undergo malolactic fermentation. As a result, fruit plays second fiddle to creaminess, and scents imparted by the oak barrel are apparent. Not DCist's favorite, but not a poorly made wine either.

Linden currently offers two reds on its standard tasting list. First is the 2002 Claret ($20) -- a blend of 63% cabernet sauvignon and 37% petit verdot. Cabernet sauvignon is a Bordeaux varietal that stars in the wines of the Haut-Medoc region on the left bank of the Gironde River and, of course, in America's own Napa Valley. Petit verdot is a dense, inky grape that's used primarily to give Bordeaux blends color, heft, and tannic backbone. Cabernet sauvignon is far from ideal for Virginia; the frequent rain and rich soil mean that the grapes don't have to work too hard to grow, and the juice ends up watery rather than concentrated. Thus, as if he were Victor Conte giving steroids to Barry Bonds, Linden's Law adds a far higher-than-usual amount of powerful petit verdot to the mix (usually, it makes up no more than 10%). The petit verdot doesn't rescue the cabernet sauvignon from weakling status, but it makes for a structurally stronger wine -- one that has the mouthfeel of a pinot noir. This is not a dense wine, and Law does the best with what the land gives him.

Very interestingly, Linden also has a petit verdot all by its lonesome in its 2002 Petit Verdot ($24). Due to its massive girth, petit verdot is rarely bottled on its own and most often used as a blending grape -- just as it's used in the Claret. What's more, petit verdot ain't cheap; typically, it's among the most expensive grapes per ton to purchase -- perhaps owing to the limited amount of it that's grown. So, if you're up for trying an oddity, this is the wine for you. Although Linden's tasting notes claim that the petit verdot has aromas of "rose petals," "exotic berry compote," and "espresso," among other things, DCist thought this wine smelled like raspberry dark chocolate. And it's as big as Virginia wines get -- so tannic that your mouth feels as if it's just had cottonballs pulled out of it after you take a swig. What's more, the wine is left unfiltered, which means that Law hasn't removed the sediment from the final product. So, don't be alarmed that the wine is cloudy purple in appearance.

Linden also pours a 2005 Vidal Riesling ($17). Although its residual sugar makes this white blend a proper dessert wine (or a gateway wine for folks who claim not to like dry wines), you could just as easily drink it with sweet/spicy Thai food or spicy seafood dishes. This is the lightest-colored wine DCist has ever seen; it's nearly as clear as water. The wine smells like fresh peaches and mandarin oranges -- a delightfully playful wine that will be perfect for the summer months.

And those are just the wines that Linden allows you to taste gratis. The winery also has a $10 cellar tasting that could feature a 2005 sauvignon blanc, a 2001 single-vineyard chardonnay called "Hardscrabble," a 2004 cabernet franc, and a 2001 Bordeaux blend also called "Hardscrabble." But DCist is cheap and wanted to visit another winery before the day was through.

No other winery in the immediate vicinity even comes close to turning out wines of Linden's quality. DCist drove north from Linden along Route 522 to Breaux Vineyards -- not too far away from Harpers Ferry, W. Va and just inside the Virginia line. The number of medals a winery shows off is usually inversely proportional to the quality of its wine. Breaux shows off a lot of medals. Predictably, the winery offers a viognier, a cabernet sauvignon, and a merlot -- all of which appeal solely to the market. It pours an odd chardonnay that smells of green olives and tastes like summer sausage on the finish. Its sweet wines are slightly better, but can seem medicinal. Its best offering is the white 2003 Chère Marie ($12) -- a semi-dry, mildly viscous wine that definitely smells of anise and apricots. But by and large, Breaux's wines taste bitter -- a flaw that could be caused by pressing the grapes too hard and thus crushing the exceedingly bitter grapeseeds into the juice.

Which leads us to suggest that day-trippers that hit Linden -- and make their way promptly to Luray Caverns.

Linden Vineyards
3708 Harrels Corner Road
Linden, VA 22642
(540) 364-1997